(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a device for disinfecting needles and, more particularly, to a device for disinfecting tagging gun needles.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Tagging guns are used for inserting attaching members, usually formed of flexible plastic, into articles. Tagging guns comprise hollow needles which are injected into the article and usually through a tag or other object designed to be secured to that article by the attachment member. Tagging guns include a plunger which reciprocates through the needle to insert the head of the flexible plastic member through the article to a position on the far side of the article. Examples of such tagging guns are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,103,666, issued to Bone and U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,130 issued to Beringhause et al, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
However, due to the nature of a tagging gun being hand-held and having a sharp point, it is not unusual for an operator to occasionally prick her finger or some other part of her body and draw blood. This is made more serious by the fact that more than one operator may use the same gun at different shifts and that infectious diseases including tuberculosis and HIV have become the #3 killer in the United States following heart disease and cancer.
One solution to this problem is to clean the tagging gun needle before use. This has generally been done in a separate cleaning station and requires the operator to remove the needle from the gun. One example of such a cleaning station is shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 29/025,785, now U.S. Pat. No. Des. 373,198, issued Aug. 27, 1996. Removing the needle from the gun itself is a potentially dangerous event and cleaning the needle along does not clean the plunger located in the needle for pushing the plastic member through the article.
While it is conceivable that the tagging gun and needle could be cleaned by immersing the needle portion of the gun in an open container of a disinfectant or that a disinfectant could be physically sprayed on the end of the gun from an aerosol can of disinfectant, disinfectants, particularly of the type necessary to effectively kill the more virulent strains of bacteria and viruses, are in themselves toxic. Such materials can cause burning of the skin or eyes or other injuries, and leaving an open container or pan of disinfectant or spraying the disinfectant in the air could, in itself, result in serious injury.
Single or multiple use medicament applicators have been known for a number of years. One such example is known by the trademark STING KILL.RTM. (medicinal preparation for external use for relief of stings and bites of poisonous insects and effects of irritating plants) and was developed by Medical Supply Company of Rockford, Ill. in the mid-60's. This device was a self-contained disposable swab-type medication applicator. One such example of such a swab applicator is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,958,571. Other types of such applicators have used either a removable protective cap or an encapsulated medicament within the applicator.
Finally, vials containing one or more dosages of a medicament, such as a vaccine, in which a syringe may be pushed directly through the top of the container without removing the top of the container have been utilized for a number of years. However, such devices have not been used to disinfect needles of tagging guns and, in addition, provide no means of preventing the user from pricking her finger with the needle while using the medicament vial.
Thus, there remains a need for a new and improved tagging gun needle disinfectant device which permits the safe and effective disinfectant in cleaning of a tagging gun needle while, at the same time, provides means for preventing the operator from pricking her finger with an unclean needle.